Dear Opsters:
My expenditures at Pacificon were embarrassingly low.? However, after Zombie
Walking with a 5AH gel cell, I am imagining that my oft operated on and
prematurely aging shoulder joints are not what they once were so I talked myself
into the obscenely expensive but low-mass Nanophosphate battery for my foot
mobile adventures.
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This means I am now selling (some perfect for Dave's NorCal 40A):
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2 PowerSonic 5Ah gel cells.? I would estimate these are 2-3 years old.? They
have been lovingly cared for, never deeply discharged, and always kept float
charged.? $10/ea? $20 and up new.
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2 PowerSonic wall-wart automatic two-stage chargers.? These bulk charge at about
300 mAh, and then switch to float at about 45 mAh.? These are perfect for 3-5Ah
gel cells (not AGM which require higher voltage)? $25/ea. $35-$75 new.? Hard to
find, but work great.? Note I won't sell the chargers unless I sell the gels,
though they don't have to go to the same person.
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1400 mAh NimH battery pack for the FT-817.? About 3-4 years old, still works
well.? This is the factory Yaesu pack.? $30? $55 new.
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1 Panasonic 8-cell "automatic" NimH battery charger for individual cells.? This
is automatic in the the comical sense that a light turns green when it thinks
the batteries are charged.? No peak detection circuit?or autoshutoff.? $15,
though it belongs rotting?for eternity in a landfill.? Currently missing in
action in my shack, but an archaelogical dig should find it soon.??
I have used a Triton charger, a favorite among the RC guys, that charges any
number cells of any chemistry with peak detection, variable charge rate, and
discharge/charge cycles that can be repeated up to 10 times.? An epic charger
with three safety circuits--time, total charge, and temp.? I mention this
because I have used this charger on all my NimH packs, as well as comparison
testing with a cheapo Chinese "5 Ah" gell cell that was in fact 3 Ah.? It helps
extend the life on NimH packs.? It also confirms that he PowerSonic gel
batteries are excellent.
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I'll let you know how the nanophospate jobs work once I get them in my greedy
little hands.
73,
Eric WD6DBM
